Live a greener, healthier life!

BPA Facts and Myths WAR

Editor’s note: The following post was originally published on Green and Clean Mom in August 2008, but the information on BPA is still relevant and important to consider. “Green & Clean Mom can inspire you to try a little harder, be a catalyst for change and to offer you some new tips and news on how to be the green, sexy and sassy mom…I know you are!”

Okay, war sound harsh but it’s a battle of sorts. Is BPA safe or isn’t it? Is it a myth that BPA is harmful and the media is fooling us because we don’t have the facts? Well, according to Mom Style News or Mom Myth Busters (same author), yes. If you follow me on twitter you might know, Friday there was a big twitter debate going on over this. The Good Human, Safe Mama, To Think and Nature Mom , twittered their opinion.

Here is it is folks, BPA might not kill you if your child drinks out of a sippy cup or has some canned food lined with BPA. Sure, I conceded to this. BPA is a chemical and the FDA and EPA has limits of safety so companies use this and then hide behind it, because they can. Companies that have gone with BPA free products have done so because of consumer demands. Why are consumers demanding this? Duh, because there are risks. Who’s most at risk? The fetus, infants and children are most at risk. Even the reports sited by Mom Style News don’t discount that, she just says they are minimal. Well, my son has a minimal risk of getting hit on our road when he crosses it because of the traffic statistics or what I observe. So I should let him just take that “minimal” risk. It’s just a possibility and not a fact! That’s how ridiculous this debate is! Here are the facts that have led ME to know that choosing BPA FREE is the right thing to do and since Mom Style News is all about the facts and going by what the facts are and not just reading mommy blogs (which I love, support, read and rely on) here it is…

FACT: The government sources are basing their decisions and statements on assessments with hundreds of flaws and errors. The FDA has based it’s decision on two studies, funded by the plastics industry.

FACT: BPA can leach out of bottle, sippys or any plastic just from a hot soapy wash in a sink or dishwasher. The scratches expose the chemical. Source: LA Times. Mom Style News states:

“As for your baby. As long as you are not feeding your baby boiling liquids your little baby buggy bumper will be just fine, even if she drinks from a BPA bottle.”

This is not a fact and is not true at all.

FACT: Doctors and Scientists with no ties to the government or chemical industries are pointing out the scientific facts of there being risks and the dangers.

“These hormones control the development of the brain, the reproductive system and many other systems in the developing fetus,” says Frederick vom Saal, Ph.D., a developmental biologist at the University of Missouri. Endocrine-disrupting chemicals can duplicate, block or exaggerate hormonal responses. “The most harm is to the unborn or newborn child,” vom Saal says. Source: Green Guide

FACT: The National Toxicology Program is planning a future evaluation of BPA but thus far has concluded there are risks. There are enough harmful “possibilities” to warrant further studies. Source: Transcript from NTP Meeting dated June 11-12, 2008

FACT: The FDA is not yet completed it’s review of BPA and is only currently saying it is safe but admits to having more studies to review. The FDA still admits repeatedly that there is minimal concern, there are possibilities and limited evidence showing BPA is NOT safe. The FDA concedes that more studies are needed to conclude the health implications. Source: U.S. Department of Health and Human services

FACT: Canada has banned BPA to help keep because they don’t want the potential risk of harming their citizens. Canada has a different approach to chemicals with a chemical eco-action approach.

FACT: The United States, in the past, has used other toxic substances, such as lead, for manufacturing purposes, despite leads toxic history.

FACT: Money is the bottom line. Industry funded studies sway reports and are at the steering wheel of government assessments.

EWG finds in the report many examples of arbitrary and inconsistent application of scientific criteria to BPA studies in the report. In comments, EWG notes that the expert panel found 70% of industry-funded and only 30% of non-industry funded studies to be adequate for purposes of assessing BPA toxicity; the panel rejects independent studies at 3 times the rate of industry funded studies.

Comments

In fact, it is true that BPA leaches from polycarbonate baby bottles and from food and beverage cans lined with certain types of epoxy resin (and other products for that matter). The controversy has centered around how much leaches, and how much it takes to cause harm. There have been hundreds of studies published (see Dr vomSaal’s website for a complete list), almost all of which document the many ways that BPA causes harm, at extremely low levels. Here’s one I don’t see mention of here. Not only is it associated with breast cancer, it interferes with chemotherapy. And that’s in adults. I am discouraged to see stories that imply that there is a debate in science, as if the matter weren’t settled. Those of us who can keep up with the scientific literature (I do because it is my profession) know that the question of whether BPA is harmful was settled long ago. The questions now are policy — should industry be allowed to write the FDA’s safety reports verbatim (this happened with BPA)? Should it be legal for industry to hire PR groups, like the Weinberg Group, to create an illusion for the public that the science is not settled? (Sunoco hired Weinberg Group, a “product defense” agency) Should cost-benefit analysis be employed, or should the govt only consider public health (not the $800,000 an hour in revenue industry generates from the sale of BPA)? To respond to you, Joe, you can’t know. CT is considering a bill that would require labeling. Meanwhile, BPA is found not only in polycarbonate and epoxy but a wide range of products, from thermal carbonless paper to toner and much much more. But let’s keep this in perspective. BPA is only one of thousands of synthetic chemicals on the market that either have no safety testing data or have failed safety tests. I propose that we take a serious look at how we make choices around toxicity. An investment in green chemistry, the branch of science that strives to find safe, environmentally-benign alternatives for the chemicals we have come to rely on, deserves our support.

Search Content

About Eco Child’s Play

Our ethos is to provide news, information, and opinions on natural, green parenting to help your family live a greener, healthier life! Additionally, we offer personal consulting services to help you achieve your green living goals.

Jennifer is a vegetarian, yoga teacher, gardener, hiker, teacher, and mother that has been living off-the-grid for over 20 years.